When I rewatched Attack of the Clones, that final scene hit me differently. Padmé runs straight to Anakin after Geonosis, holds him like she’s about to break down, and Yoda is just… there (23:04 timestamp of the video below). Watching. Saying nothing. That’s when I realized — it’s not that Yoda didn’t see what was going on. He did. They all did. But no one stopped it.
So here’s how I see it.
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Yoda and Obi-Wan Weren’t Blind — They Just Didn’t Act
There’s this idea that Yoda didn’t notice Anakin’s feelings for Padmé. But honestly, I think he knew from early on. In Attack of the Clones, Yoda senses the shift in Anakin after his mother’s death, and in Revenge of the Sith, he gives that advice about letting go of everything you fear to lose. It wasn’t random. He knew what was happening, and he was warning Anakin — without naming it.
Obi-Wan knew too. Throughout The Clone Wars, he drops little hints that show he’s aware of Anakin and Padmé’s connection. If you’ve read Wild Space, it’s even clearer. Yoda straight-up tells Obi-Wan to go to Padmé and end it. So yeah, they knew. They just hoped it wouldn’t get worse.
In Fact, Everyone Could See It — But They Let It Slide
Anakin wasn’t exactly subtle. The way he looked at Padmé, the way he spoke to her, the way he disobeyed orders to go after her — it was all out there. And that moment at the end of Attack of the Clones really says it all.
Right after the battle on Geonosis, Anakin and Padmé are standing there in the middle of the hangar, and she’s holding him in a quiet, emotional hug. Obi-Wan is standing right next to them. Yoda is right in front, facing them, and clone troopers are positioned all around. It wasn’t private. It wasn’t hidden. It happened in front of Jedi leadership and soldiers, and nobody said anything. That kind of silence wasn’t about not noticing — it was about choosing to ignore it.
So why didn’t they do anything? Because Anakin was too important. He was the Chosen One, their best warrior, and a key figure in the war. Confronting him meant risking a lot. It was easier to stay quiet and hope it would sort itself out. But it didn’t.
Yoda Probably Thought It Was Just a Phase
There are a lot of moments in Star Wars — especially in the High Republic era — where young Jedi have strong emotional bonds. Masters usually expect them to grow out of it. That might’ve been what Yoda was thinking too. That Anakin would mature and move past it.
But that never happened. The war fast-tracked Anakin’s rise in the Order, and no one gave him the time or guidance to handle those emotions the right way. His relationship with Padmé only got deeper, and by the time they realized how serious it was, it was too late.
Jedi Could Love — But Attachment Was the Real Problem
One thing that gets misunderstood is the Jedi rule on emotions. They weren’t banned from loving people. Love wasn’t the issue — attachment was. That deep fear of losing someone, the kind that messes with your judgment, is what the Jedi tried to avoid.
Obi-Wan loved Satine. But he didn’t let it control him. Anakin did. His love for Padmé wasn’t balanced. It turned into fear and obsession, and eventually, it pushed him toward the dark side. The Jedi Code wasn’t about being emotionless. It was about learning to let go. Anakin never did.
The Jedi Stayed Silent — And That Made Everything Worse
What really stands out to me is how often the Jedi Council ignored problems. They did it with the inhibitor chip situation after Fives tried to warn them, and they did it again with Anakin. They didn’t want to deal with the fallout.
Expelling Anakin or even questioning him could’ve turned him against the Order. And with how powerful he was — and how close he already was to Palpatine — that was a scary possibility. So they stayed quiet. But that silence gave Palpatine the space he needed to manipulate Anakin.
And on top of that, Anakin grew up in an Order that told him to suppress everything. He couldn’t ask for help. Not with his mother, not with Padmé, not even with his fears. So when he was spiraling, Yoda couldn’t see the whole picture — because Anakin never felt safe enough to say it out loud.
Fun Fact: Padmé Lied Straight to Yoda’s Face (Through Obi-Wan)
There’s this great moment in Wild Space where Padmé agrees to break things off with Anakin. She even tells Obi-Wan she’ll let him escort her to Naboo so they can say goodbye in private. What actually happens? They get married in secret.
So yeah — Yoda tried to stop it. Obi-Wan got involved. And Padmé, calm as ever, outmaneuvered all of them.